To avoid vanaspati, stay off chips and fast food

The incidence of heart disease in India - at least in urban areas - is unusually high.

The incidence of heart disease in India – at least in urban areas – is unusually high.

One of the major culprits is the extensive use of vanaspati, which till lately, was the chief cooking medium in most middle-class homes. Old timers recall how when vanaspati was first introduced in India, there was a hue and cry in the parliament by the desi ghee lobby on its safety. Pandit Nehru himself is said to have read out a scientific report stating that there seemed to be no reason to regard it as a health hazard. Alas, in such matters, only hindsight delivers the final verdict!

Vanaspati is a health hazard is due to the presence of trans fats created in the process of hydrogenation. Trans fats are vegetable oils that have been hydrogenated to make them more solid. Trans fats raise levels of the bad cholesterol, LDL, leading to heart disease. In the ‘70s and ‘80s, it was fashionable to switch from butter, deemed bad for the heart, to margarine. But that too, is also a hydrogenated form of vegetable oils. Of course, currently there are better and safer butter-substitutes.

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Has this knowledge about trans fats made us any wiser? I am afraid not. Many processed foods in India do not carry any significant information on their labels about the presence of trans fats. Take potato chips. Most popular brands use hydrogenated vegetable oils. Microwave popcorn, baked confectionary items and even candies are also likely to contain trans fats. The use of hydrogenated vegetable oils is also prevalent among roadside vendors, local fast food outlets and so on.

Hydrogenated oils make food tastier. So no wonder processed food is tastier than homemade food. The food industry in India is likely to be under regulation very soon to decrease the amount of such fat in their products. nsingh.rxpress@expressindia.com

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